Automatic pencil



July 21, w25n l 1,546,490 J. KAHN AUTOMATI C PENCIL Filed March 15, 1923 A TTORNE Y Patented July 2l, 192.5.

UNITE STATES 0F GUTTENBERG, NEW JERSEY.

' AUTOMATIC PENCIL.

Application led March 1.5, 1923. Serial No. 625,408.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that .luLIUs -KAHN a citizen of the United States. residing at Guttenberg. in the county orn Hudson and State of New Jersey, has invented certain new and useful lmprovements in Automatic lDenc-ils` of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to automatic pencils of the general type in which the lead is fed forward from time to time as the point wears down, by the rotation of a part of the pencil with respect to the other part or parts.

Among the objects of the invention is to provide a construction which will be not only of the simplest and cheapest possible nature but one that is thoroughly reliable and efficient, not likely to get out ot order. or fail to operate with highest satisfaction.

Another object of the invention is to provide a lead holder or clutch so constructed and related to the other parts of the structure as to make it easy for the lead to be inserted directly thereinto through the point of the pencil barrel.

With the -foregoing and other objects in view the invention consists in the arrangement and combination of parts hereinafter described and claimed. and while the invention is not restricted to the enact details of construction disclosed or suggested herein` still for 'the purpose ot illustrating a practical embodiment thereof reference is had to the accompanying drawings` in which like reference characters designate the same parts in the several views. and in which- Figure 1 is a longitudinal section showing a preferred embodiment of the invention with the parts in normal position.

Figs. 2 to 6 are cross sectional details on the correspondingly numbered lines of' Fig.

pencila Referring now more specifically to the drawings I show an automatic pencil comprising a tubular barrel 10, mainly cylindrical in form, and having a conical vor frusto-conical point portion 11 at its lower end` and having at its upper end a flange 12 extending inward substantially in a lane perpendicular to the axis of the barrel? t 13 I indica-te a safety clip whose base @0 includes a pair of prongs 14 projecting inward through parallel slots in the barrel and clinched toward each other within `the barrel.

Formed on or fitted tightly within the barrel is a guiding device indicated as a sleeve 15, shown as extending :trom the upper end ot the point 11 up to about'the mid point of the .barrel and having along one side of' its bore 16 an open side V17' con- 70 stituting a guide way extending lengthwise of the device.

The `shank 18 above referred to is indicated as of a tubular construction having its upper end portion fitted substantially closely to the head end portion of the barrel and having an inwardly formed or spun an nular groove 19 into which the flange 12 of the barrel projects and whereby the parts 1() and 18 are held from relative endwise 8G movement though permitted to have free relative rotary movement. This member or shank 18 being preferably hollow or tubular may he employed as a magazine or reservoir for holding spare leads. The lower portion of the shank is tapered. affording immediately clearance Yfor the clinched prongs 14,

-and secondly. a reduced lower end having gripping engagement upon the upper end of a suitable feeder. The extreme upper end of the shank constitutes, as shown, a socket 20 into which an eraser tip 21 is fitted. @n one side this head portion 2O is provided with' a longitudinally extending groove 22 communicating with the end thereof.

28 indicates a ca adapted to be slipped directly upon the iiead end portion 2O of the shank where it is normally retained by friction. and this cap is provided on one side with a rib or lug 24 co-operating with 1W the aforesaid groove 22 for rotation of the` shank from a rotation, between the thumb and finger of the operator, of the cap. The

cap may be withdrawn readily when it is desired to use the tip 21.-

The lead may be of any usual or preferred construction or quality, the same being projected inward through the hole -11 at the polnt ortion 11 for direct .inserton into the quil 26 shown as conslsting of la split metallic tube fitted at one end into the stein 27 shown as made also of tubular material. The end of the quill adjacent to the stem is shown as telescoped therein for a certain distance and there locked as by crimping inward portions 27 of the stem.' The split side of the quill affords sufficient resiliency to admit a lead of varying diameters or larger diameter than the normal 1nside diameter of the quill.

The feeder above referred to is indicated at 28 as comprising a cylindrical spiralof relatively stifil wire or the like, the outs1de diameter of which corresponds practically to the diameter of the bore 16 of the sleeve 15 and within which the feeder is rotatably fitted. The feeder approximates in length the length of the sleeve though its upper endprojects sufficiently far beyond the upper end of the sleeve for interlocking w1th the lower end of the shank'. 18. In otherI words, the lower end of the shank may abut against the upper end of the sleeve. Within the telescoped or overlapping connected end portions of the shank and the feeder is a core 29 consisting of a short round bar or pin, the lower end of which extends for an appreciable distance beyond the lower end of the shank or into the sleeve. The upper end 30 of the stem 27 is turned at a right angle to the main portion of the stem and lies between adjacent coils of the feeder spiral, the extreme end projecting into the guide way 17 whereby the stem rand parts attached to it are held from rotation. The spiral 28l being of a left hand character, a rotation of the cap toward the right as is customary in the practice of such pencils, the shank 18 and feeder 28 will be rotated positively in the same direction, causing the stem 27 and lead to be fed forward or downward for the purpose of projecting a suitable portion of the lead beyond the tip of the point 11 in the usual manner. The extent of movement of the stem in this direction will be limited by contact between the lower endy of the stem 27 and a shoulder o n the interior of the contracted end of the po-int see Fig. 1). When the lead is worn away after adjustment in this direction the stump thereof is removed and a. fresh piece of lead is inserted by slipping it directly into the quill and then the cap is rotated 1n the reverse direction, causing the feeder to bring the stem, quill, and

lead well within the barrel and point, theA extent of rotation of the c'ap toward the left for this purpose beinglimited by the IQWQ? end of the bar 25. Thus it will be seen that I have produced a relatively cheap construction and one that is thoroughl reliable and rapid in its manipulations. o insert spare leads into or remove the same from the interior ofthe shank 18 it is only necessary to withdraw the cap as above stat/edf and then remove the rubber tip, an expedient that may be practised readily.

It will thus be seen that there is provided a device in which the several objects of this invention are achieved and which is well adapted to meet the conditions of practical use.

As various possible embodiments might be made of the labove invention and as various changes mightv be made in the embodiment above set forth, `it is to be understood that all matter herein set forth or shown in the accompanying drawings is to be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

Having thus described my invention I claim as new and wish to protect by Letters Patent:

1. A mechanical pencil comprising a tu- .bular outer shell, a guide sleeve having a longitudinal slot therein fast to the interior of the pencil substantially in the half portion adjacent the writing end, a cyindrical spiral member mounted for movement within the sleeve, a tubular stem extending along the center of the spiral member having one end thereof bent laterally between adjacent coils of the said member, and a quill telescoped into the stem, the latter being swaged inwardly to secure the stem and, quill together.

2. A mechanical pencil comprising a tubular outer shell, a guide sleeve having a longitudinal slot therein fast tothe interior of the panel substantially in the half portion adjacent the writing end, a cylindrical spiral member mounted for movement within the sleeve, a tubular stem extending along the center of the spiral member having one 'end thereof bent laterally between adjacent coils of the said member, a quill telescoped in to the stem, the latter being swaged inwardly to secure the stem and quill together, tubular shank occupying substantially the of the spiral member and shank being telescoped, a stop member gripped in the said telescoped portion of the spiral member positioned approximately midway the barrel for limiting the upward movement of the stem and'for permanently closing the end of the shank whereby a reservoir is formed in the body thereof, said shank having its free end projecting beyond the end of the barrel, an annular groove formed in the shank adapted to be engaged with the radially inwardly projecting end of the barrel, a socket formed on the outer end of the other half of the barrel, the adjacent ends shank adapted to flt therein an erasure tip and thereby constitute a closure for the said reservoir, and a cap fitted over the exposed upper end of the shank for rotation thereof 5 to propel and repel the lead carried in the quill and to enclose the said socket.

3. A mechanical pencil as set forth in claim 2 in which the shank has a central portion of smaller outside diameter to provide a s ace between the assembled shank 10 and the barrel whereby fastenin means of a safety clip may be inserted wit out interfering with the movement of the shank.

In testimony whereof I aix my signature.

JULIUS KAHN. 

